Updates

The American Immigration Lawyers Association’s (AILA) analysed the recently published data on processing times of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) which has reached crisis level delays under the Trump admini.....

An RFE (Request for Evidence) has long been viewed as an unwelcome, and often times, onerous step as it adds uncertainty to, and prolongs, the visa application process. In the past 2 years, employers have been seeing an incr.....

DHS has announced a final rule for a more effective and efficient H-1B visa program. The final rule (1) adds a pre-registration process to the H-1B lottery, and (2) reverses the order in which the H-1B lottery is run to maximize t.....

It is time to begin preparations for the new H-1B (cap-subject) filing season. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will begin accepting H-1B visa petitions on April 1, 2019 for Fiscal Year (FY) 2020, which starts.....

Immigration enforcement has been the focal theme of the Trump administration. Immigration issues and compliance continue to be often times, complex, and misunderstood by many. It is more important now than ever for emp.....

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a Policy Memorandum dated November 29, 2018 clarifying the “one-year foreign employment requirement” for a qualifying U.S. organization that wishes to f.....

A group representing some of the country’s top technology companies like Google, Facebook, Microsoft, IBM etc. sent a letter to the Trump administration on November 1, 2018 calling H-1B adjudication practices into quest.....

Last week, The Department of Homeland Security (“DHS”) published a proposed regulation that would significantly reform the H-1B cap selection (lottery) process.
The proposed regulation would introduce two main changes.....

The Ministry of External Affairs has issued a notification in an attempt to protect and ensure the welfare of Indian emigrants overseas. All Non- Emigration Check Required (Non-ECR) passport holding Indian nationals who are .....

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (“USCIS”) has issued a policy memorandum regarding changes in the validity period of a Form I-693, Report of Medical Examination and Vaccination Record, when filed in suppor.....

A proposal to require H-1B employers to pre-register electronically – for each beneficiary – for the H-1B cap lottery, prior to filing petitions for adjudication is now under review at the Office of Management and Budg.....

Thousands of children born in the United States to Indian parents including those born on US soil to visitor visa holders automatically get US citizenship by virtue of their birth in the country.
Recently, President Trump .....

LawQuest has been awarded 'Winner - Best Law Firms To Work 2018' by Vahura. Based on employee feedback; taking into consideration - Culture, Firm Leadership, Satisfaction, Pride, Rewards & Recognition and Work-Life Balance.
.....

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (the USCIS) has recently updated its website allowing STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) OPT (Optional Practical Training) F-1 students to engage in training pro.....

According to a new report by the National Foundation for American Policy (NFAP), the number of H-1B visa denials and Requests for Evidence (RFEs) has increased significantly soon after President Trump issued the “Buy America.....

The United States ‘B’ Category Visa allows foreign nationals to enter the U.S. on a temporary, limited basis to engage in legitimate business activities provided that they are not receiving remuneration from a U.S. sou.....

Earlier this year, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) made two radical changes affecting foreign students – (1) one pertaining to the calculation of unlawful presence for students; and (2) the sec.....

The move to repeal work authorisation to certain categories of H-4 visa holders is in final stages, the Trump administration has told a US court, a decision that could hit tens of thousands of Indians.
An H-4 visa is a visa.....

According to the recently released policy memorandum by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), unlawful presence of foreign students and exchange visitors entering the U.S. in valid F, J and M status will be calcul.....

The French Government has introduced a new system called France-visas for scheduling visa appointment. France-visas is a portal which contains the detailed information about the visa application process. It guides the applic.....

The Bureau of Immigration, India on February 12, 2018 announced the launch of 'e-Services' for all foreign nationals residing within the jurisdictions of Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai FRROs. As on.....

We have been evidencing constant changes in the U.S. immigration policy ever since the presidency of Donald Trump. Most of the policies are not welcoming to immigrants despite the U.S. being “A Nation of Immigrants”.&n.....

The USCIS (U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services) has announced on April 6, 2018, that the H-1B cap limit for the fiscal year 2019 has been reached. This applies to both the 65,000 regular H-1B cap limit as well as the 20,000-.....

The Trump administration is seeking to change the visa application rules for both non-immigrants and immigrants by requesting them to submit details of their previous phone numbers, email addresses, social media histories and inte.....

The USCIS (The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services), which is the federal agency that runs the H-1B program has opened its window to accept H-1B visa petitions for the fiscal year 2019 from April 2, 2018.
The.....

On March 23, 2018, President Trump signed the bill giving EB-5 Investor Visa Program an extension till September 30, 2018. Investors can file the petition to obtain a green-card before September 30, 2018 by investing $ 500,000 in .....

On March 20, 2018, the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) announced that premium processing will be suspended for H-1B cap petitions for all FY 2019 cap-subject petitions, including individuals with a U.S. .....

International Women’s Day is a worldwide event that celebrates womens' achievements while calling for gender equality at the same time. LawQuest is a law firm unlike most others, where a majority of our team memb.....

Changes in the Immigration Regime in India as on March 2018
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has recently made several amendments to the immigration regime in India. Some of the important changes are provided below.
Modi.....

The Polish government recently with effect from January 1, 2018, implemented the following changes to laws pertaining to work permit applications. These changes have been explained below:
Employers are required to provide.....

The Bureau of Immigration, India has announced the launch of 'E-Services' for all foreign nationals residing within the jurisdictions of the following Foreigners Regional Registration Offices (FRROs):
Mumbai FRRO;.....

Of recent times, there have been numerous websites which are not authorized by the Government of India and have been soliciting e-visa seekers to apply for a visa through their online portal against a service fee thus leading to c.....

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) will be accepting H-1B CAP petitions for the federal fiscal year 2019 on April 2, 2018.
The H-1B classification is reserved for “specialty occupations&rdqu.....

The American Immigration Consultants (Regional Centres) are pitching about the EB-5 visa program to Indian IT companies like TCS, Infosys and Wipro to move top executive to America.
Traditionally, Indian IT companies send their e.....

The UK will introduce new immigration rules for international students from January 11, 2018.
With the introduction of the new rules, international students can easily switch over to work visa (Tier 2) from Tier 4 visa on c.....

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) recently tweeted that an H-1B visa holder may work for more than one employer provided they have approved I-129 for each employer.
The H-1B visa is the.....

The United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) released an analytical report on the approved H-1B petitions for workers with the extension of stay or change of status for the calendar year 2014 through 2016.
It wa.....

The Government of Israel has abridged the visa application procedure for Indians. Israeli Tourism Ministry India Director Hassan Madah said that this initiative has been taken to encourage more Indians to visit Israel, Tel Aviv.
.....

In November 2017, the Australian Government had introduced new regulations that barred visa applicants from submitting new visa applications and entering Australia for a period of ten years if they provided false or misleading inf.....

The Delhi High Court recently held that the Central Government ought not to deny passports to Indian citizens living in Tibetan refugee colonies. The decision was rendered in a writ petition filed by Tamding Dorjee, who was born t.....

An individual or musical group intending to appear in a showcase performance while in the U.S may qualify for a B-1 visa provided that the activity is more like an audition than a public performance before a paying audience and th.....

Foreign nationals entering Iraq for work on a multiple-entry visa are required to complete visa activation procedures and medical tests at the earliest to avoid penalties and interruptions to the work permit process. The Governmen.....

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DOS) has released the data on the visa issued to Indians under the Non-Immigrant Visa (NIV) category in last six months. The most popular NIVs amongst Indians are the B1/B2, H-1B, L-1, and.....

Presently, members around the globe are confronting delays with processing of the visas due to technical issues in the system at various consular posts. The American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA) Department of State (DOS).....

Sushma Swaraj, the External Affairs Minister of India announced to grant visa to the parents of a 12-year-old boy who is believed to be from Pakistan and is abandoned in Faridkot Observation Home, Punjab after being detained by th.....

The Central Government (CG) has directed to link Aadhaar Card with numerous services and documents to continue using them.
The following are the list of documents that need to be linked to Aadhar Card:
PAN Card &nd.....

The United States (U.S.) Supreme Court in Washington allowed the travel ban by the Trump administration to go into effect even as legal challenges against it continue. The court’s orders mean that the administration can full.....

A U.S. district court judge recently ruled that the Trump administration could no longer delay the Obama administration era immigration rule designed to enable foreign entrepreneurs to temporarily stay in the U.S. under the Intern.....

The UK government has decided to make the immigration rules much liberal, after considering the fall in the percentage of international students and researchers enrolling in the UK universities.
In the past years, UK has noticed .....

The United States has withdrawn from participating in the United Nations (UN) global treaty on Migration, which will be adopted in 2018 to pledge to protect and preserve rights of migrants and refugees.
President Donald Trump's a.....

1. What is the minimum amount of capital to be invested?
For investment in “Targeted Employment Areas” (TEA) the minimum amount of capital to be invested is $ 500,000 (approx. INR 3.4 cr) and in areas&n.....

According to recent data released by the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. government conferred U.S. citizenship to 7.53 lakh individuals during the fiscal year 2016 (October 1,2015 to September 30,2016) out of which .....

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has announced that it will start issuing Tourist Visas to foreign nationals from 2018. As stated by the Head of Saudi Commission for Tourism and Natural Heritage, Prince Sultan bin Salman bin Abdulaziz,.....

On November 21, 2017, an official of the Home Ministry revealed that India and Russia have signed a pact for permitting visa-free arrival of flight crew of chartered and scheduled flights between the two countries.
As per the est.....

Recently, the Federal Court of Australia adjudicated upon a very important question in light of the worldwide increase in the number of immigrants, and the growing number of cross-cultural marriages: is a Partner Visa applicant&rs.....

With the introduction of the Payment of Gratuity (Amendment) Bill, 2017 in the Parliament, there is an increase in the ceiling limit of gratuity for employees in private and public sector, at par with the central government employ.....

UK Prime Minister Theresa May has announced that effective January 2018, banks and building societies in Britain will carry out UK visa status checks on over 70 million current accounts. The UK Government plans to freeze bank acco.....

As part of the UK government’s ongoing reforms to welcome talented people from across the globe, Prime Minister Theresa May, has announced to double the number of visas offered annually through the Tier 1 Exceptional Talent .....

Good news for all Non-Resident Indians (NRIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs) and Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs).
The UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India) elucidated that as most NRIs, PIOs, and OCIs are not .....

The Australian Government has introduced new rules that bar visa applicants from entering Australia for ten years if they provide false or misleading information in their visa applications or indulge in visa fraud. The new rules w.....

With effect from November 2017, Indian nationals visiting the UAE under a 14-day visa-on-arrival cannot change their status to another visa type while in the UAE. Those who wish to change their visa type after they have ente.....

On Monday, November 13, 2017, the U.S. Department of State Bureau Educational and Cultural Affairs along with the Institute of International Education, reported that Indian students account for 17.3 percent of the total number of .....

The Japanese Embassy to simplify visa application procedure for multiple-entry-visa for short-term stay for Indians by January next year.
The applicant’s employment certificate and support letter will not be required when t.....

The requirements to make a case for the L-1A ‘function manager’ classification are clearly spelled out in Matter of G-Inc., decided by the Administrative Appeals Office (AAO). The November 8th Policy Memorandum i.....

Poorvi was honored to receive the WE Inspiration Award presented at the ThinkBig 2017 Event, organized by WEConnect India International Association on November 13, 2017 in Gurgaon. The 'We Inspiration' category is awarded to.....

On November 8, 2017, the Central Government of India informed the Supreme Court of India that it proposes to grant “proxy voting” rights to Non-Residential Indians (NRIs) by amending the Representation of People’.....

Expatriates working in India were brought under the ambit of the country’s social security law – the Employees Provident Funds and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 1952 (EPF Act) - in October 2008.
F.....

During his first address to the U.S. Congress in February 2017, President Donald Trump had emphasized on the need for a merit-based immigration system. The terrorist attack in New York City on October 31, 2017 has again given him .....

The Supreme Court on November 03, 2017 refused interim stay on the linking of Aadhaar Card to bank accounts and telecom service providers stating that the Constitution Bench is to decide on the validity of the matter on the ground.....

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) recently announced its ambitious 3-year plan to admit approximately one million immigrants to Canada by 2020. As stated by Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen, the aim of the plan .....

Recently, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia made headlines with its act of granting honorary citizenship to Sophia, a humanoid robot. Though the move has been criticized for various social and ethical reasons, it certainly raises a ques.....

Immigration of Indian nationals to foreign countries via various investor-visa programmes was not very popular until a few years ago. Lately, increasing number of Indians are considering the option of immigration to countrie.....

According to data of the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), Indian IT giants became the biggest consumers of the non-immigrant work visa - L-1 visa - for the fiscal years 2015 and 2016.
L-1 visas ar.....

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) issued a new binding memo on October 23rd rescinding earlier policy that required officers to give deference to prior decisions, in processing nonimmigrant visa extension applica.....

President Trump’s latest travel ban which was set to take effect on October 18th, was blocked yesterday by a federal judge in Hawaii. The latest ban imposed travel restrictions on citizens of Chad, North Korea, Venezue.....

On October 3, 2017, the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) announced that it had resumed Premium Processing Services, for all type of H-1B petitions, including the extension of stay petitions for the fi.....

LawQuest was delighted and honored to have the presence of various Consular Officers at their Diwali & Dance Party on October 7, 2017. It was truly a pleasure to dance and dine with Consular Officers from the B.....

Under the EB-5 program, increasing number of Indian nationals are shelling out half a million US dollars in order to get themselves and their families permanent residence status in the US, and eventually American citizenship.&nbsp.....

Recent amendments by the Government of Canada to the Citizenship Act which came into effect on June 19, 2017 has confirmed that additional alterations regarding criteria for Canadian citizenship will come into effect as on October.....

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) constituted a high-level committee headed by retired judge Arvind Kumar Goel to consider the legal challenges faced by women who are harassed or deserted by their Non – Resident Indian .....

Due to increase in the number of foreign nationals seeking economic asylum in Hong Kong, Immigration Department’s Assistant Director, Ma Chi-Ming introduced an online registration platform for all Indian nationals planning t.....

The number of RFEs (Request for Evidence) being issued by the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) has shot up by 45% this year as compared to the previous year. An RFE is usually issued when any docume.....

President Trump signed a proclamation on Sunday, September 24, 2017, imposing new restrictions on entry to the U.S. on foreign nationals. This proclamation will replace his prior travel ban which expired on September 24th. T.....

Recently at the UNWTO’s (United Nations World Tourism Organization) General Assembly which took place in Chengdu, China, Qatar’s Ministry of Interior (MoI) and Qatar Tourism Authority (QTA) announced that the holders o.....

Recently, the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services) has been conducting site visits of U.S. employers using L-1B visas, as has been reported by Bloomberg BNA. The L-1B visa is used for transferring forei.....

Foreign nationals visiting the U.S. can now be denied entry, or those already in the country can be asked to leave, on the basis of a new ground – if such individuals fail to follow through on their stated plans for three mo.....

LawQuest, a leading immigration firm from India, will be participating in Worldwide ERC®'s - Global Workforce Symposium in Chicago, from September 27 - 29, 2017 at the Hyatt Regency Hotel. Worldwide&n.....

The Union minister of state for Home, Kiren Rijiju stated that the Centre will urge the Supreme Court to modify its 2015 order of granting citizenship to Chakma, Hajong refugees in north east India without diluting the rights of t.....

The USCIS has resumed premium processing for H-1B visa petitions subject to the fiscal year 2018 from September 18, 2017. However, the USCIS has not yet resumed this service for H-1B extensions. As indicated by the USCIS on Septem.....

With the Deferred Action for Children Arrivals (DACA) program being wound down by March 2018, the U.S. Congress is under increased pressure to pass federal legislations to safeguard the interests of DACA recipients– the DREA.....

The U.S. Department of State, in August 2017, made revisions to the Foreign Affairs Manual (FAM) pursuant to President Trump’s “Buy American Hire American” Executive Order (EO) of April 2017. The FAM.....

On September 5, 2017, the Trump administration announced that it will end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program after six months – on March 5, 2018. The six-month period is intended to give the Cong.....

The US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has announced that effective October 1, 2017, applicants of employment based green cards will be required to attend an in-person interview during the I-485 (adjustment .....

The Supreme Court of India, on August 22, 2017, struck down the Islamic practice of ‘triple talaq’ as being violative of the Indian Constitution, directing law makers to enact a new legislation. The apex c.....

The Indian government in March 2017, added a new visa category – the Intern Visa. The Intern Visa is available to foreign nationals desiring to pursue internships with an educational institution, company or NGO in Indi.....

President Trump endorsed a new bill – the ‘Reforming American Immigration for Strong Employment (Raise) Act’ - aimed at cutting back legal immigration by 50% over a decade. The Bill, sponsored by Republican Senat.....

This year, per the USCIS’s report, the government received 3,36,000 H-1B petitions (both new petitions and extensions) and approved 1,97,129 as of June 30, 2017. One of biggest users of the H-1Bs - technology outsourci.....

It has been reported that the Indian government is working on a revised visa application form to capture a foreign applicant's criminal history including cases of child abuse, and so on. The Minister of State for Home Affair.....

A Medical Visa for India is available to foreign nationals desiring to seek medical treatment in recognized hospitals and medical centers in India. The initial duration of the Medical Visa is up to one year or the period of .....

Dowry is a big social evil, unfortunately, still prevalent in the Indian society. Dowry is the property and money that a bride brings to her husband’s house at the time of her marriage. Although dowry was l.....

There are some significant variances which can be seen in the immigration law and policies of Canada and the U.S. Given the current climate under the Trump administration, the U.S. each day is becoming overtly anti-immigrant where.....

International travelers whose sole objective of visiting India is recreation, sightseeing, casual visit to meet friends or relatives or to attend a short-term yoga programme, are eligible to enter India on an electronic tourist vi.....

The State of Israel recently launched a new type of visa called the “Innovation Visa Program”, which is a joint project of the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Interior which is the State agency that issues visa.....

Biometric enrollment comprising fingerprints and facial image scans will be taken along with the visa applications at the VFS India Application Centers in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town.
Applicants availing the ele.....

The U.S. Department of State sent out a cable on July 12, 2017 to all U.S. embassies and consulates worldwide, instructing them to inform their host governments regarding new standards pertaining to U.S. travel and immigration.&nb.....

A foreign national entering the U.S. is issued a Form I-94 by the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at the port of entry. The Form I-94 is essentially an arrival/departure record that states the date until which the for.....

The USCIS has issued a revised version of Form 1-9, the use of which will become mandatory beginning September 18, 2017. The Form I-9 is used by employers for verifying identity and employment authorization of newly hired em.....

All U.S. employers that sponsor an H-1B foreign worker are required to maintain certain documents related to the worker in a Public Access File (“PAF”) which is to be kept either at the employee’s actua.....

The U.S. Global Entry programme has rolled out for the Indian citizens on July 3, 2017 thereby allowing expedited clearance of pre-approved, low risk travellers. Besides Indian citizens, U.S. citizens, U.S. lawful permanent reside.....

The Indian government has extended the June 30, 2017 deadline for applying for conversion of Person of Indian origin (PIO) cards to Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cards until December 31, 2017. Prime Minister Nar.....

The U.S. Supreme Court on June 26, 2017, revived parts of President Trump’s executive order of a travel ban, by permitting the government to impose the 90-day ban on travelers from six Muslim-majority countrie.....

The US Supreme Court in its June 22nd ruling, has made it harder for the government to strip naturalized immigrants of their US citizenship. In the case of Maslenjak v. United States, Divna Maslenjak, a naturalized citizen w.....

The Canadian Government has opened the doors to the highly skilled, specialized, in-demand foreign nationals who will help in the growth of Canadian entities’ businesses by bringing the Global Skills Strategy into effect on .....

The U.S. Department of State recently introduced a new supplemental questionnaire that will enable Consulate officers to obtain information for enhanced screening of certain visa applicants applying for immigrant as well as non-im.....

LawQuest and Dentons teamed up with Sol’s Arc, India’s first parallel school offering special education, to extend educational concessions for children with disabilities in Maharashtra, India.
Many children with .....

The U.S. Secretary of Labor had directed the Department of Labor (DOL) to enforce laws within its jurisdiction that govern the administration and enforcement of non-immigrant visa programs. This announcement was made to protect th.....

Serbia’s Law on Employment of Foreigners enacted in 2014 laid down a provision in Article 19 which stated that foreign national employees of a company located outside Serbia assigned to work at an affiliated l.....

In April 2017, the Indian government had made it mandatory for all individuals subject to income tax in India to quote their Aadhaar Card number in their income tax returns, with effect from July 1, 2017. This appli.....

Foreign students who desire to study in American universities require an F-1 visa (student visa) to be able to do so. International students in F-1 status are required under US immigration law to be enrolled full-time during their.....

In 2017, our Managing Partner, Poorvi Chothani, will be speaking at two annual American Immigration Lawyers Association conference in New Orleans.
2017 AILA Global Immigration Forum: Protectionist World – Are We Singing the.....

The seminar organized by The Indo-American Chamber of Commerce's (IACC) and LawQuest covered topics like President Trump’s recent executive orders, other government initiatives and pending Congressional bills which will impa.....

The BDC has hosted their conferences in a host of interesting and exciting cities in Asia. The 5th Annual AILA BDC Conference in Chennai was organized and chaired by Mrs. Poorvi Chothani. Chennai was chosen as the conference ve.....

The 2016 TrustLaw Awards were held in September in New York. LawQuest was a finalist for the IMPACT AWARD which recognizes projects that demonstrate significant impact for an NGO or social enterprise, their community, and beyond. .....

LawQuest was granted "TrustLaw Recognition of Excellence" award at the inaugural TrustLaw Regional Dinner of Excellence held on July 22, 2016 in New Delhi. This event was hosted by Thomson Reuters Foundation in conjunction w.....

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